New Human Rights and Public Health Dual Masters Degree is First of its Kind

Building on years of cooperation and the successes of the Master of Human Rights the School of Public Health, the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, and the College of Liberal Arts have joined forces to create the first Master of Human Rights and Master of Public Health (MHR/MPH) dual degree program. This program allows students to complete two Masters degrees in as little as three years. 

As can be seen in the health and human rights projects we have recently showcased on healthcare inequality in marginalized communities, ethics of clinical trials, and equitable access to basic healthcare across the globe there is substantial need for additional research and practice at the intersections of these two fields.  The current global pandemic has further elucidated the need for this type of work.  When asked about the need for this new program Dr. Deborah Levison, Director of Graduate Studies for the Master of Human Rights Program said:  “The Covid-19 pandemic has helped to reveal troubling disparities in health access and affordability, among other things, in the United States and many parts of the world. A human rights lens on health disparities shows how they systematically align with discrimination by race/ethnicity, social class, gender identity, religion, migration status, etc. The MHR/MPH dual degree gives students the in-depth understanding they need to have the authority to affect policy and practice discussions in that arena”. 

The MHR/MPH program aims to provide students with a unique opportunity to gain knowledge and training in both the human rights and public health arenas at a graduate level. Eligible students will be able to begin this program in the Fall of 2021.  The program builds on existing dual degree opportunities among the colleges and makes use of numerous existing courses and resources already available through the University. This dual degree  gives students the opportunity to study how health and human rights both intersect and work alongside each other. Dual degree students are likely to dive into human rights debates surrounding healthcare inequality both domestically and globally. 

The uniqueness of this new program combined with the globally recognized reputations of the School of Public Health and the MHR degree will position students who complete this dual degree to be leaders in both public health and human rights. 

We are thrilled to be able to offer  this incredible new opportunity, and highly anticipate the dynamic research and public engagement outputs by MHR/MPH students. This increased cross-disciplinary collaboration will help further the mission of the University of Minnesota as well as the human rights field as a whole. 

Students interested in pursuing a dual MHR/MPH should contact the MHR program coordinator, mhr@umn.edu